Bakersfield Life

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: Volunteer Hairstylist for Optimal Hospice Patients

By: Laurie Reese-Optimal Hospice Volunter

Topics: hairstylist, hospice, volunteer

 
Can a haircut change a person’s life? Judging from my own experience, I’d say yes. A bad one can leave you miserable and a good one can make you feel like a whole new person. But what if you weren’t able to take care of your hair? What if you were a man with a terminal illness who had short hair his whole life, only to become bed ridden with the unwelcome side effect of hair that looked like he’d been stranded on a deserted island for a year? That’s where Rosa Davalos comes in. A volunteer for Optimal Hospice, she visits terminally ill patients and provides them with free haircuts. “They’re really happy that someone’s there to make them look the way they were when they were able to go out and take care of their hair. They always want to pay and can’t believe that someone is there just because they want to be there.” 
Davalos cut inches off the grown-out hair of one gentleman who said, “I almost forgot how I looked.” 
“It was like taking a ton off of him,” said Davalos. “He felt more alive.” 
Like the rest of us, Rosa Davalos has a busy life. She recently opened her own business, Davalos Beauty Salon & Boutique on Chester in Oildale, and she has a husband and four children. When her mother passed away from Lou Gehrig’s disease, she realized how stressful the death of a loved one can be. So, she carved out time in her busy schedule to volunteer. “It makes me feel like I’m still helping, like I’m helping my mom in a way. I treat the hospice patients the way I would treat my mother. This is how I would do my best for her.”
It might seem like visiting dying patients would be difficult, but Davalos finds it brings her great joy. She is grateful to be able to give something to someone in need. “When people are dying and they can’t get out of their homes, the person taking care of them also needs help. One person or two people can’t do it all and anyone leaving this earth deserves to go with dignity.”
No matter your schedule, there is time for volunteering. “It’s the most wonderful thing a human being can do,” said Davalos. “Volunteer what was given to you and share it with others.” Maybe the life you’ll change is yours.
 
This is the year that you can make a difference…. Optimal Hospice Care is holding a volunteer training on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 from 10am-2pm for anyone interested in donating a little time and compassion to those affected by terminal illness in your community. In addition to more patient family support volunteers, we are looking for notary publics, hairstylists, pet therapy teams, housecleaning/yard clean up crews and caring individuals in Bakersfield and the surrounding communities. We are especially in need of volunteer assistance in the Tehachapi, Delano, Wasco, Shafter, Arvin, Taft, Lamont and Kern Valley areas.
For more information on our amazing program or to reserve your seat at the training, please call Karen at 661-716-4000 or email her at kbudnick@optimalcares.com.